Page 59 of Pinch of Love

Maybe if I just let the book club see that there wasn’t a possibility with Maya, they’d leave us in peace. I gave a quick wave to Maya’s niece, and they quickly paddled away.

“Fine. I’ll ask Maya and see if she’d be up for it.” If I can persuade my brother to report back to my parents that Maya and I have no future, then maybe it will trickle back to the meddling book club, and I can go back to living my life.

“Great. Let me know today.” His voice went up an octave.

“Today? Why today?”

“So I can reserve the camp spot.”

“Fine.”

“Good.” And my bother hung up.

I stood up and stretched, wondering if I should just tell my brother she wasn’t interested or if I should give her the option. She said she hated camping, so the odds were in my favor that she’d decline.

And she had a lot of work things going on that probably made being near cell service crucial.

I stared at my phone and thought about calling, paced a few steps, and shoved my phone back into my pocket.

Walking into the house, I saw Chewie already sleeping on her bed by the fireplace.

That was a first. She usually liked the couch.

“Adios, Chewie. I’ll be back after I get rejected by a beautiful woman.”

She didn’t bother paying attention, so I grabbed my wallet and keys and headed out the door.

By the time I pulled down the street to her house, I had thought about just driving by and forgetting about the whole thing.

The time at the lake was special. Kissing her in the Jeep was spectacular. Pulling her out of the wall was even better.

But I didn’t want this invitation to blow the carefree whatever this was out of the water. I gripped the steering wheel and let out a deep breath. I was nothing more than a good distraction.

Maybe she was the same for me.

I turned into the drive and saw the front door open, and my heart raced when she stepped outside, nearly oblivious that I’d pulled in front of the house. She rubbed her cheek with a tissue, and my chest tightened.

Not again. It had better not be that asshole of an ex torturing her.

I hopped out of the Jeep as Maya’s eyes met mine.

“Hey, Cash,” she said weakly, followed by a sniffle. “I swear I don’t spend all my time crying.”

I smiled and nodded, walking toward her. “No, you also make out with near strangers in front of diners, play tickle in lakes, and get stuck in walls.”

Her eyes stayed on mine, and her frown tipped up into a smile.

It was the most beautiful smile I’d seen. “You’re no stranger. It might not be the meet-cute I was thinking, but you’re definitely no stranger.”

I really needed to look that up online.

When I reached her on the front step, I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her in, kissing the top of her head. “What’s up? What happened?”

I took a step back to give her some space, but I was fighting the urge to keep her in my arms all day. I wanted to take away whatever pain was haunting her.

My only fear was that the tears were based on heartache for her ex and that she just was in denial.

“I swear I’m not a nut case. I swear it,” she teased.